one last chance
by lipshake
Summary: Gabriella finally finds a place where she fits in at East High. She's made some great friends. Especially Troy. She finds out she has to move, but will Troy be able to tell her how he really feels before she has to leave? PLEASE R&R! CHAPTER 3 NOW UP!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Okay, so I know there are many stories like this, but I will try to make this one as different as I can. Please just read and review!**

"Okay, everyone, settle down," Mrs. Darbus said to the class. "There is still three months left of school, so there is no slacking off. We have many upcoming projects and assignments."

Gabriella leaned back in her seat, and sighed. She looked at the back of Troy's head. He was her best friend. Taylor was also her best friend, but Troy... was different. She would never want to admit that she has had a crush on him since she came to East High. Of course, she thought he was cute when she met him on New Years Eve, but now they are really close.

She saw Troy glance back at her and grin at Mrs. Darbus' comments. She let out a small chuckle and smiled. She knew they would probably never become more than friends, but every time he looks at her, she feels like her heart is going to melt.

When the bell rang for second period, everyone was glad to get out of Darbus' class. She goes on and on about how they still have a few months left before summer vacation, so they need to start paying attention.

Gabriella picked up her books, and caught up to Taylor by the door. Taylor wasn't going out with Chad... yet. They liked each other, and she has talked with Gabriella about how much she wants to go out with Chad. Gabriella has told her that she likes Troy. She didn't tell her how much, though.

"Are you ready?" Taylor asked, laughing at how many books Gabriella was carrying, and failing to keep them in her two small arms.

"Yeah," she groaned, picking up her geometry book that just fell on the floor. "Let me just... uh... get these."

"Okay," Taylor suppressed a laugh.

"Hey, Gabi, do you need help?" Troy asked, coming up to her, chuckling. He grabbed her English and math book.

"Thanks," she muttered, and laughed.

"Having troubles?" He smiled, as they walked out of the door.

His smile made her stomach have butterflies, "Just a little."

"I can't wait until school gets out," he sighed. "Just three more long, long, months."

She giggled, "Yeah, me too. It feels like it's going on forever."

"Well, you coming here has definitely made school go by faster."

"Really?" She grinned.

"Yeah, and we still have another musical to do," he said. He's been trying to convince her to do the spring musical, but she still hasn't made up her mind.

"We'll see."

"Come on, Gabi. We were awesome in the winter one. Especially you," he said, trying to sound convincing enough.

"Oh," she battered her eyelashes, and then made a straight face. "Nice Try."

"You just keep thinking about it," he said, as they walked into English, which fortunately, was more relaxing then Drama class.

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At lunch, Troy sat in his chair with his tray of food in front of him. Chad sat on his left, with a basketball on his lap, and Gabriella sat on the right, talking to Taylor, on the other side of her.

_Gabriella..._ he sighed. He couldn't deny the feeling. He loved her. Everything about her fascinated him. He's liked her every since she came to East High. She's the funnest person to be around out of everyone in the group. He liked Chad. Chad was his best buddy. He has been with him since middle school.

But Gabriella... she was different. He really felt like he could trust her more than anyone he knew. She listened to him, and she actually cared. He knew Chad cared, but he wasn't much of a listener. Troy also thought she was beautiful. He loved her brown eyes and long dark hair. He wanted to ask her out so bad. He knew he had the courage, and it wouldn't be too embarrassing since they're best friends. He just worried that if she said no; their friendship wouldn't be the same. Things might become awkward between them.

Troy told Chad about how he felt about Gabriella. He wanted to tell the person that he tells everything to, which was Gabriella, but... she was the topic. Chad also told him that he likes Taylor. He was planning on asking her out pretty soon. Chad wasn't nervous at all because he knew that Taylor liked him too. Troy wished he knew how Gabriella felt. It would boost his confidence level up to ask her out much higher.

He watched as Gabriella took a sip of her drink as she and Taylor talked about a homework problem at the table.

Chad hit his arm, "Man, stop staring."

Troy snapped his head toward Chad, "Hm?"

"Stop constantly looking at Gabi," he whispered. "I mean, I know you like her and all, but people are going to start noticing."

Troy coughed, and sat up strait. He wiped around his mouth, making sure there was no drool. He couldn't help but look at her, but luckily, Chad always saved him before anybody else could tell.

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"Okay, I'll see you tomorrow," Gabriella said, waving to Troy as she walked up the steps to her house. He walked her home everyday, since they lived close to the school.

"Alright, I'll call you," he sighed, watching her walk away.

"See ya," she smiled at him before closing the door. She leaned against the inside of the door and sighed. She smiled at how she spent everyday with Troy. It was perfect. She held her books against her chest, as she walked up the stairs to her room.

When she got there, she sat at her desk and spread her homework out, working on it. Her mom wasn't home from work yet. She always got home an hour and a half before Gabriella got home from school. She liked that sometimes. It gave her time to be alone to do stuff, and sometimes she invited her friends over.

Halfway through her Math worksheet, she heard the door open, and then close. She knew it was her mom returning from work.

"Gabriella!" She called from downstairs.

"I'm home!" Gabriella called back, and then continued doing her algebra.

After working for a few more minutes, her cell phone rang. She unplugged it from the charger and looked at the caller ID. It was Troy. She smiled to herself and answered it.

"Hello?"

"Hey," he responded, smoothly. "What's up?"

"Nothing much. Just finishing some homework," she said, putting her pen down and laying on her bed.

"Sounds... fun," he chuckled. "So, what do you say to the musical?"

She rolled her eyes, "Troy, I don't know."

"Why?"

"You know how I feel about performing in front of big crowds," she said, hoping Troy would stop pestering her.

"Oh come on, you were great in the winter musical. Yeah, sure you were scared at first, but you got over it really quick."

"Yeah, because I was with you," she said, softly.

"And you will still be with me in this one too."

"You really want to do it?" She asked, feeling as if she had no other choice but to say 'yes'.

"Yes!"

"... Okay," she sighed. "But under one condition."

"Alright," he agreed. "What?"

"We have to do it together."

"Why wouldn't we?"

"Well, you could get the lead... with Sharpay or something, and I might have a small supporting roll."

"Gabriella, don't worry. You're great. Of course we'll do it together. I wouldn't have it any other way," he said. "And you know, you would be the one getting the lead, and I would get the supporting roll."

She laughed, "I'm sure."

"Gabi," her mom called from downstairs.

She heard and spoke to Troy, "Hang on. My mom just called me." She covered the holes where you talk in with her fingers and peered her head out of the door. "Yeah?"

"I need to speak with you downstairs," Ms. Montez said.

"Okay. I'll be right there," she shut her door and put the phone up to her mouth. "Troy, I have to go. I'll call you back in a few minutes."

"Okay. Talk to you soon," he said.

She smiled, "Sounds good. Bye." She hung up and set her phone on her desk, closing her schoolbooks and putting them in a neat pile.

She then came downstairs and sat on the couch next to her mom. "Hi. What's going on?"

"Gabriella, I have some news," her mom said, calmly.

_Uh-oh_, she thought. "Is it good or bad?"

"Well, I'm not exactly sure. Well, you know how my company transferred here to Albuquerque?"

Gabriella slowly nodded, not understanding where she was getting at.

Her mom looked into her eyes, "Well, it turns out we're transferring back to San Diego. I got a new great position as a partner with my boss."

"What?" She just stared, dumbfounded at what her mom just announced. She tried registering the news. They were moving? Again?

"Honey, I'm sorry," she put her hand on her leg. "I know this is sudden."

Gabriella didn't know what to say. Was she supposed to be happy moving back to her hometown? She would get to see all of her old friends. Wait-she didn't have any old friends. Her friends were here, in Albuquerque.

"Why?" She muttered, not blinking.

"I told you. We are transferring back because I got a great job back in San Diego. I got promoted."

"Oh," she looked down. She realized what was going on. They were going to move again, and she was going to leave all of her friends here. She was never going to see them again. She was never going to see Troy again. The thoughts rushed through her as her mom waited for a response.

"Isn't that great, Gabriella?"

"Great?" She asked, her voice rising. She didn't want to move! She hated moving! She's already done it enough, and thought they didn't need to anymore. She finally found where she belonged.

"I got a better job."

"But what about me?" She yelled, feeling new tears form in her eyes. "What about me? I finally make some great friends and I actually fit in! I know it's hard to believe. Gabriella Montez, fitting in? But yes, mom, I actually have friends that like me for who I am. You don't know how that feels to leave."

"Honey, I know this is really hard to understand and adjust to. Listen, you didn't want to move to New Mexico, did you?" She asked.

Gabriella just crossed her arms and look out of the window, feeling hot tears roll down her cheeks.

"Well, when you got here, it turns out you loved it. You made great friends, and joined a bunch of clubs-"

"Exactly why I don't want to move!"

"I know you don't, but who knows? You might make some great friends and you'll fit in."

"I sure didn't last time."

"But, you're different now. You know what you like. You've finally found out who you really are."

She sighed, and kept her arms crossed. She just wanted to run to Troy's arms and cry. She actually felt safe there. Like nothing could harm her. "When?"

"When what?"

"When... when are we going?" She sniffled and wiped her eyes.

"In about three months. It'll give you time to finish the school year. We have to visit and buy a house. You can check it out. Gabriella, I just want you to understand."

She didn't care. She was mad at her mom. She was mad at her mom's job. She was mad at everything right now. Everything was going perfect, and then it has to be ruined. She bolted up and ran to her room. She lay on her bed, and sobbed into her pink pillow.

How was she supposed to tell everyone? She couldn't leave. She just couldn't. How was she supposed to tell Troy?

**A/N: Okay, thank you so much for reading. It means a whole lot to me. I hope you all review. That would make me feel very happy:) What did you think? And I promise, it won't be the same as all the others. Please review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you all for the reviews. I had no idea I would get that many. Okay, so here is chapter 2!**

The next morning, Gabriella woke up to a dark room. She groaned, pressing the 'snooze' button on her alarm clock. She turned over, burying her face in the pillow. She didn't want to get up. Ugh, she wasn't very much of a morning person.

Eventually, her alarm made the second wake-up call. She pulled her covers off of her face and rubbed her eyes. She turned to her side, and turned on her lamp. Yawning, she got up and opened her curtains. She squinted at the newly shining light and made her way to her dresser.

After pulling her shirt over her head and getting it straight on, all the memories of last night flooded back to her. She couldn't remember if it was real or not. Was she really _moving? _No, she couldn't. It had to be a dream. She then remembered it wasn't a dream. It was all real. She knew it had to be true, walking into the bathroom, and taking one look at her red, puffy eyes.

She brushed her flattened curls and put it up in her best attempt of a ponytail. She applied a thin coat of mascara over her lashes. Walking into her large bedroom, everything came to her. She would have to leave everyone. She would have to leave her life here. She just couldn't come to face the facts at how hard it was going to be. She put her head in her hands and let her tears pour out. She leaned against the wall, and slid down.

"Gabi!" Her mom called from downstairs. "You're going to be late for school."

She got up and wiped her eyes, trying to make it seem like she never cried. She sniffled, straightening her shirt. She grabbed her book bag and trailed it downstairs with her.

Her mom greeted her at the bottom step, smiling, "Hi. It's about time you got up."

She brushed past her and sat at the table, ready to eat the breakfast her mom set out.

Ms. Montez sighed and sat beside her, "Gabriella?" She looked up at her mom without saying a word.

"How are you?" Her mom asked. She seemed sympathetic. Gabriella knew it wasn't her mom's fault that they were moving. She just had no one else to get mad at.

"Fine," she took her bowl to the sink, and finished up her milk.

"Honey, I know you're still angry, but you have to know that if I could stay here, in Albuquerque, I would. I don't have a choice."

"I know. Well, you could always quit your job," she muttered the last line.

"What?"

"Nothing. I have to go to school. I'll see you later," she faked a smile and walked out of the front door. She started walking down her block, and then remembered that Troy usually picks her up at her house on the way to school. How could she forget? That's what she looks forward to the most.

Although, she felt bad about not waiting, she kept walking, not even wanting to face Troy. What if she did, and her tears burst out? Then he would ask what was wrong, and she would just look like a fool.

"Gabriella!" A voice called behind her. She stopped and spun around to see Troy running towards her. She groaned, pushing back a strand of hair, hanging in front of her face.

"There you are," he smiled. "I didn't know where you were, so I asked your mom, and she said you already left. Why didn't you wait?"

She stared at him blankly. Should she tell him? Would it make the rest of the walk silent? She decided to keep silent... for now anyway. "Um... I don't know."

"Oh," he said, flatly.

"I guess I just forgot," she said and kept walking.

He caught up to her, touching her arm, softly, "Wait!"

She slowed down, feeling his hand touch her arm. She liked the feeling and never wanted it to go away.

"Why didn't you call me back last night?" He said, breathless. She looked at his messy hair, dreamily. She then stared at his deep, blue eyes, wordless.

She then snapped back to reality, realizing he just said something, "Sorry. What?"

"You said you were going to call me back, but you never did. What happened?"

"Oh, um... I forgot," she lied once more.

He chuckled, "You seem to be doing that a lot lately. You okay?"

She just wanted to hug him and cry into his shirt and tell him that nothing was going right. "Everything's fine."

"Okay..." he said, suspiciously, before they began walking again.

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When they arrived at school, they had Mrs. Darbus first. Troy had noticed all morning that Gabriella was acting a little different. She seemed irritated this morning when he ran into her by her house, and she seemed more distant then usual.

After class, Gabriella got up and met with Taylor in the hall. She had a disappointed look as Gabriella neared her.

"What?" She said, seeing Taylor's face.

"What what?"

"Why are you looking at me all weird," she said, with a sigh.

"Gabriella, no offense, but... you don't look so good," she said, picking up a piece of her hair on her head and then dropping it back.

She knew Taylor was right, but does that mean everyone thought she looked terrible? Troy just _had _to come to school today, "I know."

"Why?" She asked, ears ready to listen.

"I'll tell you after school," she whispered, thinking that if she told her now, she might start to cry. Just looking at Taylor made her want to cry, knowing she was probably never going to see her again.

"Okay," she said, eyeing her. "Is everything alright?"

Gabriella could feel a tear make it's way to the outside of her eyes, but she quickly pushed it wiped it away. She shook her head and sniffled.

Taylor put her arm around her, "Okay. Sshh. We'll talk about what happened after school."

She nodded, walking into the girl's bathroom. After she was done washing her face and cleaning up, she walked out.

After school, her and Taylor sat outside the school. Everybody was rushing to get to their bus. She didn't know where Troy was. She really wanted to walk home with Troy, but she knew she needed to tell Taylor.

"Okay, so what's up?" She asked, looking into her eyes.

Gabriella wiped her tears and then spoke, "I'm moving."

"What?" Taylor replied, acting like she didn't hear what she just said. "Did you just say your... m-moving?"

She nodded, and put her head in her hands, "I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry. I'm pretty sure it's not your fault," she said, putting her arm around Gabriella, comforting her. "Why?"

She sniffled and choked out her words, "M-my mom's company... transferred h-her back to S-San Diego."

"No," Taylor trailed off. "I don't believe this."

"I know. She said we wouldn't move!" She cried.

"Hey, Gabriella, are we walking home?" Troy asked, coming up to them. As soon as he saw her he kneeled down next to them, "Hey, hey, hey. What's wrong?"

She continued to sob into Taylor's shirt. He mouthed 'What's wrong?' to Taylor, but she just ignored him.

"Gabriella?" He asked.

She shook her head, without looking at him, "Just... just go home without me today."

"What's going on?" He asked again.

"Just go, Troy," Taylor whispered to him.

"Okay," he muttered and walked away, completely confused of what was going on.

Gabriella lifted and Taylor looked at her, "So, I take it you haven't told Troy yet?"

She let out a soft laugh and shook her head, "No."

Taylor just looked up at the sky, "You're leaving," she stated. "When?"

"In three months."

"Gabriella..." she trailed off. "I really, really don't want you to go."

"I don't want to leave at all. I'm going to miss everything here."

"Especially Troy," she mumbled.

Gabriella shot up, "What did you just say?"

"Nothing."

"Did you say I was going to miss Troy?"

"Well... kind of," she giggled. Gabriella gave a weak face and covered her face again. "Aren't you?"

"Of course," she cried. "I'm going to miss him, and I don't know how to tell him."

"You told me."

"I know, but I don't get nervous around you. I haven't even told Troy how I really feel," she said, unhopeful. "And by the looks of the situation, it doesn't seem like I'll ever be able to."

**A/N: Thank you so so so much for reading! What did you think? Depressing? Sorry. Okay, so please review! I'd love that! LOL**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews. Sorry I took a while to update. I'm busy trying to wrap up my other story. Will she tell Troy? Read to find out!**

That same night, Taylor walked Gabriella home because she might collapse and start crying if she was left alone. Gabriella was now sitting at her desk, resting her head down on it. She remembered Troy today after school. He was so nice and caring. _I should tell him, _she thought.

"Gabriella, honey!" Her mom called up the stairs. She groaned at the sound of her mother's voice. Wait-Ms. Montez sounded kind of happy. Maybe they weren't moving after all. She wiped her tears and stuck her head out of the door.

"Yeah?" She asked, waiting for her mom to say 'got'cha' or 'happy April Fools day'. Of course, it wasn't April yet, but it could be an early April Fools.

"Time for dinner," she said, and sprinted back towards the kitchen.

Gabriella slouched onto her bed and cried. She didn't want to eat, she didn't want to talk, and she didn't want to move! She lay on her bed for five more minutes until her mom came up.

"It's time for dinner I said," she said, wearing an apron.

"I'm not hungry," she looked the opposite way of her mom.

"Gabriella, we are not going to get into this right now. I said it's time for dinner, and I expect you to listen to me," she put her hands on her hips, and then left the room.

"Whatever," she muttered, and not long after, made her way downstairs. She sat at the table in front of a plate of food. During the middle of dinner, she had barely eaten anything.

Her mom put her fork down and sighed, "Gabriella, please don't be mad at me."

She rolled her eyes, "How do you expect me to not be mad at you, when you promised your dumb company wouldn't transfer until I graduate!"

"It's not my fault-"

"But you promised. Do you know what a promise is, Mom?" She asked. "It means you mean it, and... you know what? A promise means so much that I can't even find the words to it."

"You know, Gabriella. You know I wouldn't do this move if I didn't have to."

Gabriella didn't say anything. She just took her plate into the kitchen and bolted upstairs. When she got to her room, she jumped on her bed and screamed into her pillow. She hated crying, but it was the only thing that felt good right now. Suddenly, her cell phone rang. She sniffled a few tears before answering it.

"H-hello?" She said.

"Gabi?" A voice asked.

She sighed, knowing it was Troy. She was not in the mood to talk to him at the moment. She wasn't in the mood to talk to anybody.

She held the phone away from her face, as she wiped her eyes, breathed in and out, and sniffled to make it sound like she wasn't crying.

"Hi."

"What's wrong?" He asked, worried.

"Nothing," she blinked to get the tears out of her eyes. She knew Troy would do anything to get down to the bottom of a problem he didn't know.

"Well, you sound like you are crying, and you _were_ crying earlier and didn't want to walk home with me. Did I do something?"

"No," she said. _You're perfect. _

"Then why were you crying?"

"I... I wasn't."

"Gabriella! What's going on?"

"Nothing!" She yelled, letting her tears fall. "Nothing."

"You're acting... different. Something is wrong. Why can't you just tell me?"

"Because nothing is wrong," she sobbed.

"You're crying! I can hear you!" He said, growing impatient. "Let's meet somewhere. We can talk."

"No. I have to go," she said, and hung up. She wanted to tell him, but... at the same time she didn't. Troy was going to be the hardest letting go out of everybody. She really felt a connection with him that she's never felt with someone before.

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The next day at school went by kind of in a blur for her. At least she got to stay the rest of the year. It would be hard to transfer during the school year. Well, that is what she did when she came to East High.

Thinking about it, she was going to miss this school so much. Her and Troy pretty much changed it. Now everybody is friends with everybody. Well, there are still cliques and groups of friends, but there is no limit for what you want to do. This school was where she discovered the best things in life. She discovered that she could be more than just a smart girl that nobody notices. And Troy was the one that helped her change that.

"Hey," Taylor said, putting her arm around Gabriella's shoulders, sympathetically. It was during lunch and they just sat down at the table.

"Hi," she said, softly.

"I heard Troy called you last night," Taylor opened up her bag lunch.

"Yeah, he did."

"Did you tell him?"

"No," she looked away.

"Why not?"

"I can't!" She yelled.

"Can't what?" Troy asked turning towards them.

"Ugh!" She groaned, grabbed her books, and ran out of the lunchroom. The only place she knew was the rooftop. She quickly went up the stairs, and sat onto he bench. She folded her arms over the edge and rested her chin on them. She looked out onto the school grounds. If you looked far enough, you could see the ocean. She would really miss it. Sure, California had oceans, but it just wasn't the same.

"Hi," she heard Troy and snapped her head around to find him coming towards her.

"Hi," she muttered and looked back out to the ocean. She felt this was becoming awkward. He then sat beside her, looking out at the ocean as well.

"It's pretty, isn't it?" He asked.

_Did Taylor tell him? _She asked herself. That wouldn't be a good way for him to figure out. She was going to tell him... eventually. Why was this so hard anyway?

"Yeah," she nodded.

They sat in silence for a little bit until he spoke, "Listen, Gabriella, I know I've been saying this a lot lately, but what's wrong? Are you okay?"

She nodded, roughly. She could feel the tears coming to the surface of her eye and blinked a few times, trying to dry them away.

"Hey, hey, hey," he said, quietly. "What's going on?"

She shook her head, "N... nothing."

"Are you sure? Why are you crying all the time?"

She couldn't believe what she was doing. She was lying to Troy. Her best friend. She was lying to her best friend. Friends tell each other everything. Why wasn't she saying anything? How hard is it to say 'I am moving'?

"Oh, um... my... um... hamster died," she said, sniffling.

"You have a hamster?" He asked. "I mean had."

"Uh... yeah. I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I've just been... really emotional," she said, as he put his arm around her.

Although he was confused at why she didn't tell him, and walk home with him, he tried to understand. He held her close and let her cry.

Gabriella felt even more terrible. She just lied to him again! And if he found out, this lie was going to turn bad. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay. Pet's can be... very close to us. I just don't remember you having one."

"I did. His name was... Steve."

"Oh."

Just then, the bell rang. The loud noise was shocking to their ears, since they were used to the wind and each other's presence.

After school, Troy had to stay after for basketball, so she walked by herself. She looked around the neighborhood, trying to take it all in. She barely knew her neighbors, but felt she was going to miss them.

As she opened the door, her mom was on the couch, on her laptop. Gabriella hung up her coat on the hook.

"Gabriella?" She asked, as Gabriella was trying to make her way upstairs. She stopped and looked back at her mom. "How was your day?"

"Okay," she said, bluntly.

"That's good," she said, getting off the couch and coming up to Gabriella. Her mom kissed her forehead and walked in the kitchen. She had left the laptop on the couch, facing her way. She walked up to it and looked at the pictures. There were houses and prices. It was all too much. The houses did look nice, but it's not what she wanted.

She peaked her head in the kitchen, "If anybody calls or stops by, tell them I'm busy."

"Okay," her mom said, cheerfully. She was just happy that her daughter had finally spoken to her.

Gabriella ran upstairs and lay on her bed. She couldn't believe that the only person she told was Taylor. She had so many more friends. What's wrong with her?

For about an hour, she sat in her room, doing nothing. Was this what the next couple of months were going to be like? Ignoring everybody, and locking herself in her room, doing nothing?

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Ms. Montez sighed looking back at her laptops screen. It was such a hard decision to buy a house. These next three months weren't going to be easy. There was going to be a lot of tension between her and Gabriella.

She didn't want her daughter mad at her. It wasn't her fault. Just then, there was a light knock on the door. She set her laptop on the couch and answered the door. It was Troy.

"Hi, Troy," she smiled.

"Hi, Ms. Montez," he said, playing with his hands. "Is uh... Gabriella home?"

"Well, she's a little busy right now. I can tell her you stopped by."

His hopeful smile, turned flat, "Oh, okay. Um... sure you can tell her that."

"Okay, great."

He walked but before she could close the door he spoke again, "Oh, and I'm sorry about Steve."

"What?" She asked, letting out a laugh.

"Steve..." he said, hoping it would ring a bell. "Your hamster?"

"We don't have a hamster."

"I know. I'm sorry for your loss."

"Um... Troy, we _didn't_ have a hamster," she said, laughing.

"I'm confus-" he said and then stopped. "You know what, never mind."

"I'll see you later," she said.

"Bye," he said, walking down their steps.

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Gabriella was sitting on her bed, flipping her pen in between her fingers. She really needed to finish her book report and was late. She usually did it right when she got it, but she was behind on a lot of work lately.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the balcony doors. She turned around and saw Troy standing there. _Does he ever give up? _She thought, getting up and opening the doors.

"What are you doing here?" She said.

"I came to see you."

"Didn't my mom tell you I was busy?" She said, sitting on her bed.

"Yeah, and she also told me you never had a hamster."

She looked down, "Oh."

"What's up with that?" He asked, sitting beside her.

"Nothing."

"So, you just told me you had a hamster that died for the heck of it?" He asked.

She got up and went outside on her balcony, "You won't understand."

He got up and went outside, next to her, "Yes I will!"

She paused and looked at the branch outside on the tree. She could hear Troy coming up behind her.

"You know I will. Gabriella, why won't you tell me? I thought we were friends."

"We are."

"Then tell me!" He begged. "I know there is something going on. You have been ignoring me everyday. On Monday, you were perfectly fine and happy. Now you're different. I don't understand. You pretty much ditched me yesterday after school, and now you're not telling me anything! I guess... I guess I'll just go," he said, walking towards the edge of the balcony.

She grabbed onto his arm before he could swing his leg over the railing. He turned around and she paused before her eyes began to fill with tears. He just stood there, not saying anything. He wasn't going to bother asking what was wrong. Every time he did, it resulted in her being stubborn.

"I'm sorry," she said, wiping her eyes as more tears made there way down. "I'm so sorry I didn't tell you."

"What? You still haven't told me."

"I... I'm moving," she said, looking away.

Those words hit him like a hard brick. They just stood in silence. He didn't know what to say. He managed to repeat what she said. "You're moving?"

She slowly nodded, starting to cry again. She leaned over the railing.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't know how. Well, I really like you... as a friend, you know?"

"Yeah, I like you too... as a friend."

"Well, it was just too hard. I mean, it's going to be so hard leaving here."

"I know. When are you going?"

"We're going back to San Diego in three months. It gives me time to finish the year."

"Why are you going?"

"I don't know. I think my mom got transferred back. I'm so sorry," she said, crying.

He looked at the sky, "It's okay. It's not your fault, but... it's just coming as a shock."

"I know," she said. "It came as a shock to me too."

"Well, I'm glad you finally told me," he said, pulling her into a tight embrace.

She wrapped her arms around him tight, "I'm glad I told you too."

**A/N: What did you think? Thanks for reading! She finally told him! I bet you guys are happy! Well, please review!**


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